Property tax relief ‘would help private landlords’

An exemption from some property tax would allow private landlords to put their money towards other useful landlord services, according to a survey from the Association of Residential Letting Agents (Arla).

Some 61 per cent of landlords said that they would spend the extra cash on making changes to their properties, the research uncovered.

Operations manager at Arla Ian Potter said that financial incentives are important to the private rented sector (PRS) because it is predominately made up of individual private landlords or couples, as opposed to companies.

"The costs of improving stock are often intimidating, especially when meeting decent homes standards and energy-efficiency targets,"he explained.

His comments follow the publication of - and consequent government response to - the Rugg Review of the PRS.

The assessment concluded that the PRS has an important part to play in the overall property industry.